Gas safety plate



April 5,1927. 1,623,812

v H. F. PREFONTAINE GAS SAFETY PLATE Filed June 50, 1926 /4 .30 J? fiqWTORNEYS.

Patented Apr. 5, 1927.

UNITED. STATES HARRY F. PREFONTAINE, or BROOKLYN, new YORK.

eAs SAFETY PLATE.

Application filed June 30,

My present invent-ion pertains to safety attachments for gas stoves of the natural as well as artificial gas type and it contemplates the provision of a simple and inexpensive construction that is adapted to prevent the accidental opening or closing of the gas valves with which stoves of the character specified are generally equipped.

The invention further contemplates the provision of a device that may be used in conjunction with my safety attachment to act as a support for the attachment in instances where the stove is not provided with a suitable support.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be'fully understood from the following description and claim when the same are read in connection with the drawings accompanying and forming part of this invention, in which- Figure l is a' top plan view of a portion of a stove equipped with my novel device.

Figure 2 is a front elevation showing the connection of my device to a stove.

liigure 3 is a transverse section taken on the line 33 of Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a sectional view taken in the plane indicated by line l'i in Figure 1 and showing the attachment in closed position in full lines and in open position in dotted lines, it being understood that the attachment is adapted to be raised to an angle different from that shown in dotted lines or until the top of the plate of the attachment rests against and is held in open supported position by the stove proper.

Figure 5 is a detail View of my novel latch for holding the attachment in locked normal position.

Figure 6 is a detail view showing the supports I employ when the stove is not equipped with a support such as illustrated in Figure 1. I

Similar numerals of reference designate corresponding parts in all the views of the drawings.

My improven'lents are adapted to be attached to the stove proper indicated by 1 and the said stove is equipped with the usual feed pipe 2 that is secured to the stove by means of the conventional brackets 3 that in turn are mounted on the stoveby rivets 0 fasteners 4. These fasteners 4 ordinarily are adapted to secure legs 5 to the stove at this point I would have it understood that immediately before the point at 1926. Serial No. 119,638.

which the brackets 0r supports 3 are secured to the stove, said brackets are formed with a'curved raised portion as clearly indicated in Figure 4-. Extending laterally and connected with the feed pipe 2 are the usual gas nipples 6 having the valves 8 arranged therein as well as the mixing chambers 9 and the said nipples terminate in the burner tubes 7 all of which features are wellknown in the art.

Adapted to be hinged in the brackets '3 by means of pintles 13 is my novel safety plate 12 having the slots or openings 11 in the forward face thereof'to receive therein handles 10 of the valves 8. In other words these hinging elements may be an integral part of the plate ,12 which in practice I desire to form of sheet tin; At this point I would distinctly have it understood that the openings 11 formed in the face of the plate 12 are so arranged that the plate will bear on the smallestannular surface of the han dles or keys 10 when said keys are open to permit flow of gas to the burners. More'- over, by reference to Figure 2 it will be seen that when the handles 10 are in their fu l open-position that said handles will rest in one corner of the openings; It is a well established fact that the handles or keys of stoves are turned in an arc and that the height of the flame of the burner is controlled by the turning of the handles. However, in all stoves of this type there is a portion of the turning of a key in which though a flow is established to the burner. nevertheless, it is insuflicient to be ignited and therefore I have cut the openings in the plate so as to take care of the turning of the keys only the distance that the flame will he established. Consequently, if an attempt is made to turn the gas off when the plate is in a position as shown in Figures 1. 2 and 3 the flame will not be extinguished because when the key has reached the posit-ion in the corner opposite to that of the full open position, as better illustrated by dotted lines in Figure 1, the flow to the burner of gas will not be diminished sufliciently to cause the flame to be extinguisheiil and therefore any casual movement by a child or other person of the keys when the plate is in its normal closed position will not be attended by danger of escaping gas.

The plate is provided on one side with the latch 14 that is pivoted to the plate at 15 and the latch is further provided on its forward end with the bent portion 16 that hooks under the gas feed line 2 thereby preventing casual lifting of the plate 12. This latch 14 is provided with the finger piece or handle 17 and when it is desired to lift the plate 12 it is merely necessary to move the handle or finger piece 17 so as to pivotally swing the latch 14 with respect to the plate 12 and thereby disengage the hooked or bent end portion 16 from the feed line 2. The handle 1'? may then be used to lift the plate to the dotted line position as in Fig, ire 4- or ii? desired until the plate 12 rests and bears against the edge of the stove 1, where it will remain during the lighting or establishing the low of gas to the burner tubes 7. Maniil' i the lifting of the plate cannot be accomplished by a child and if accomplished by an adult either with the gas cocks open or closed will require suiticient attention to warn the operator of the consequences of manipulating the keys or handles. liloreover, when the keys are moved from the open to the full closed position, dropping of the plate and locking of the latch to the feed line proper will prevent casual opening of the cocks or valves and this holds true equally when the gas keys are in the open position,

Some stoves are not equipped with the curved brackets 3 but with brackets formed after the manner shown in Figure 6 and indicated by 30 and hence the drilling of a hole in the bracket such as 30 to receive the pintles 13 is impossible for the purpose of accomplishing the desired results due to the fact that the hole would be in the wrong position. In this instance I provide the novel support 32 that is secured to the bracket 30 by means of the fastening elements 31 that comes equipped on all brackets, to clamp the bracket to the feed line. My novel support 32 is provided with a flat right angular portion that is provided with an aperture to receive the fastener 31 and the said bracket is drilled or punched with an opening 33 and is further provided with the peculiarly constructed inner end that is adapted to bear and fit snug against the front wall of the stove proper. Manifestly one of these supports is provided on each end of the stove. It is my intention to form the elements comprising my invention, of material that may be stamped from tin or the like, thereby reducing the cost of the device to a mini mum.

What I claim:

In an attachment for stoves, the combination of a support, a plate having integral pintles formed therein whereby the plate hinged with respect to the support; said plate having a fiat upper wall and an integral forwardly and downwardly extending front wall with apertures arranged therein to accommodate the gas keys of the stove when in partial or full open position, a latch pivotally secured on one end wall of the plate and having a hooked forward portion adapted to engage the main feed pipe of a stove when the plate is in a plane parallel with respect to the support.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand.

HARRY F. PREFONTA'INE. 

